PHILOS 2YY3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 10: Moral Relativism, Deontological Ethics, Moral Responsibility
16 May 2018
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PHILOS 2YY3 Tutorial – Mar 5 2018
Good Summary:
• More than just correctly conveying the conclusion of author that you are summarizing
• Do’t just at to get the esult of the ie
• Show that you KNOW and the process of how the author reaches their conclusion, and
put those reasons in compelling terms
• Provide reader with charitable reading
• Not only is this what Harman believes, here’s why he believes it – put in strong terms
with as much help
• Reasons why author develops the conclusion
• Any ways the author modifies their conclusion – Harman with moral relativism, cant
judge cultures without practices – but we cant judge PEOPLE for engaging in those
practices
o We do’t hae a oal easo to iteee ad stop those paties
• Good summary points out implications of view – he leaves these spaces open
Good Philosophical Reasons:
• Pick something out of your summary and use that for starting point as reasoning to
some sort of conclusion
• Argument: more than an opinion or intuition, more than YOUR opinion/your intuition
o Talking you your reader, and want to justify your position to your reader
• My opiio is this… elaoate o that
• Begin somewhere, where your reader might agree
• Pojman: some things that people take to be immoral (torturing children) → hat’s the
implication of this
• I want to argue for X, and try to work backwards
o Good reasons for reader to accept X
Kant
• Morality can get tracked back to use a person
• Intentions and dispositions matter
• This approach to morality is a negative responsibility
o Just responsible about the state in the world
o If you can effect some change, you are morally obliged to do so
• Deontology – does not care about effects brought upon the world
o If everyone followed deontology, deontologists would not take that as evidence
that their moral theory is wrong
o Deon – duty
o Ology – logical study of something → logical study of duty
▪ What your duty is, how to follow it
• Moral responsibility can track back to who you were – responsible for becoming the
person you are now
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